A New Perspective
by Yaoi8293
Summary: What would happen if all the 7th years were allowed to return for one final year to complete their education. How will they treat each other? How will Harry react after seeing Draco return to Hogwarts after almost causing its downfall? Has Draco changed since these events transpired? and if he has, was it for the better?
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: So yea, this is my first time writing anything for the Drarry ship r even the Harry Potter fandom so I hope you enjoy it. I actually really enjoyed writing this fic a hell of a lot! So I hope you enjoy it and if you like it let me know :D_

The war was over.

The Dark Lord had been defeated and everything went back to a quasi-normal state. After the Battle of Hogwarts, many thought the school would have been closed for a large portion of time, however, in mid-July following the battle, letters were mailed off to all the students of Hogwarts. Those who were newly of age and those who would have graduated under normal circumstances but were forced to take their final year off recieved letters different from the other years. Prospective First-years received the traditional first year letter. The students who would normally be graduates of the prestigious school of wizarding received a different letter. These returning students had the option to either repeat their year at Hogwarts or to reject the notion and receive complete documentation stating that they finished their 7th year and have graduated. Those who decided to repeat their year at Hogwarts did not have to pay tuition, and all returning students who had lost any items damaged or destroyed as a result of the battle, had their items replaced as best as possible, courtesy of the Ministry of letters were all signed by the new Headmaster, Professor Minerva McGonagall.

Minerva was troubled. As she personally reviewed each of the letters that came back to Hogwarts she had been excited to see some of her favorite students return for their final year. Harry, Ron, Hermoine, just to name a few. However, they were not the source of her troubles. When it came to allowing the re-admittance of some students, the offer was also extended to students who had aided the dark lord. As she read through the letters she had not expected any of them to reply, however there was one member who she had definitely not expected to receive a return letter from. For the most part there had been no reply from Voldemort's aids and McGonagall had breathed a sigh of relief. However, on the last day to reply, August 15th, after she had finished going through all the other letters and was ready to close up for the day and focus on the final preparations for the students, a final letter rocketed into her open window and placed itself on the Headmaster's desk. Opening the letter, she skimmed through, finding the box for re-admittance to be checked and the box for 7th year to be checked as well. Everything seemed in order until she read the signature at the bottom which read clearly Draco Malfoy.

"Oh dear", were the only words she was able to mutter before she sat down heavily. She told herself that it was what Dumbledore would have wanted, but McGonagall knew that a conference was inevitable, and she wasn't sure if she was ready for it.

On September 1st students, old and new, filed into platform 93/4excited to begin a new year in the beloved School of Wizardry. For Harry and his friends, it was a vacation of sorts, after spending a year running after and destroying the various horcruxes, they were simply excited for the change of pace. The morbidity that was the Weasley borough was becoming too much for them to handle. It had been almost enough to sever the relationship that Ron and Hermoine had developed. Though with Hermoine's rational thinking, they were able to find the problems and salvage their relationship. Harry on the other hand hadn't been so lucky. After the war, he had changed a bit. Seeing all the death and destruction around him had been enough to cause him to withdraw from all of those around him. With the strain that their break-up at the end of his sixth year and subsequent year apart had put on their relationship, as well as Ginny dating others during that year and Harry's withdrawal, Ginny thought it a good idea to end whatever remnants of a relationship were left between them. This didn't help Harry very much with his depression and while no one could blame Ginny, several had wished she'd at least waited to break the news to him. Harry was glad that he received the letter from McGonagall, another year at Hogwarts would help him recharge his batteries before going out into the "real world". He also needed to take his N.E.W.T's to become an auror, but that was more of a formality than anything else.

The arrival at Hogwarts had been no less grand than it had in previous years and Hogwarts looked as though a war had never even been waged there. Everything was in pristine condition as was unexpected to those who had lived through the battle. Walking in, they were welcomed by the staff of the large castle like building that was Hogwarts. The professors huddled the first-years to a passageway that led to the great hall where they would be sorted. For many, the nostalgic air gave them a second wind, Harry's mood picked up quite a lot as he sat in the great hall, with Hermoine and Ron, making guesses at which first-years would be sorted to which house. However, for one person in particular, he wasn't all too fond of the festivities.

Draco entered into the hall the last in the line, hiding from the other students, afraid of what they might do to him. He filed in, last to fill in the Slytherin table, which had considerably less 7th years than other tables. As he took his seat, Minerva entered into the room followed by the first year students, some bushy eyed and excited, others scared and nervous. Reaching the podium where the sorting hat rests, Minerva turned to make a statement to the students.

"Before we begin I would like to make a few statements. First, I would like to say that the Dark Forest is forbidden to all first-years as it has in years past. Next, I would like to present to you our new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, he was auror for the Ministry of Magic but felt that he needed to teach our young one how to defend themselves should we ever find ourselves in crisis again. Everyone please give a warm Hogwarts welcome to Hawkes Hawlish." Hawkes stood up and nodded at the full hall and took a seat again. "Now, for my final announcement, many of you may not have noticed but we have a student that has returned from the clutches of the ex-Dark Lord himself." The hall went deathly silent as everyone looked around to find the traitorous individual. Draco broke into a cold sweat, regretting ever returning to Hogwarts, or even agreeing to this stupid announcement. Though deep down, he knew that if he were to ever begin to feel good about himself again, he would need to start here. "Draco, if you would" McGonagall said looking directly at him. Removing the large concealing cloak he stood, fear in his eyes. He looked around at the other students, most with hatred, others with indifference. Just as he was about to sit down, he locked eyes with the famous Harry Potter. The look of pure hatred on his face made Draco almost vomit immediately and feel weak. Sitting down as composed as possible he couldn't stop his body from shaking at that look. "Now I know that many of you feel that Draco is a traitor to Hogwarts, but I can assure you, that he is now loyal to Hogwarts and that there will be no need to treat without the utmost respect as you would give any of your other peers. It will benefit you all to show courtesy as all acts of harassment or any sort of fighting will not be tolerated by myself, nor any of the teachers." said McGonagall as her eyes scanned across the room. Harry scoffed loudly as he heard that earning a look from Minerva. "That goes for you too Mr. Potter, you may have defeated the Dark Lord but any misbehaving, even from you, will not be accepted. Do I make myself understood?" The room was silent in response. "Forgive me, but I believe I asked a question. Do I make myself understood?"

"Yes head master" the hall said in unison.

"Excellent, then let the sorting begin." The sorting lasted for about a half hour through which Draco squirmed uncomfortably, feeling the burning gaze of Harry Potter never leave him. Even after the food appeared in the large banquet platters. Draco, appetite leaving him, took all the bustle and excitement about the bountiful food as a good cover for him to slip away to his dormitory.

Harry saw his arch-rival scurrying out of the hall and decided to follow him. If there was one thing that Harry did not approve of, it was HIM returning to this school, not after what he'd done. Walking swiftly he exited the hall, giving Ron and Hermoine some excuse of having to go to the bathroom without putting much thought to it. Reaching the corridor, Harry turned just to see the pale boy turn down another corridor. In his most silent run Harry did his best job catching up to him but Draco moved rather fast for someone as frail looking as he looked. In the last corridor before the door to the Slytherin common room, Harry pulled his wand out. "Hey Ferret boy" he called out, ready for a duel.

"There is no need to follow me Potter," Draco said, stopping, but not turning to face the boy with the lightning scar.

"Yes there is, I'm onto you Malfoy, I know what you did and that you're still loyal to Voldemort and all of his followers"

He turned around an exhausted chuckle passing his lips, "Potter, you know nothing about me or where my loyalties lie. My loyalties are to myself only, and I will not stand here and lower myself by talking to you." Turning, Malfoy left to the Slytherin Common Room.

"I'm watching you Malfoy!" Harry yelled after him.

Safe in his room, Draco cast a privacy charm and a silencing charm on his quarters. He didnt want anyone eavesdropping on him as he broke down in tears. Thoughts of regret, and self-hate swirled through his mind as he reflected on all the horrible things he'd done. He'd done so much, He'd betrayed his school, his professors, and his headmaster. Draco watched as one of his best friends was killed by his own fiendfyre curse. Harry had saved him that day from the fyre. He had been terrified the entire ordeal and he wished he could make it up to Harry. Though the hate filled gaze that Harry greeted him with proved that he may never get that chance. The year was off to a great start for Malfoy so far.

A/N: Hey thanks for making it to the end :D you get two authors notes for the price of one :D Anyways, I've already written chapters 2 and 3 of this fic because of reasons, I'll try to release the chapter on some sort of schedule so its not all at once. Lemme know what you think :)


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hello dear lovelies! This is the second chapter for my previously posted Drarry fic that I had not developed a name for. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this and I should have the next chapter up next week if you enjoy this one. The rating for both parts is teen(for language) i think but eventually there will be some sort of slashyness to it. If anyone has any idea for a scene they would like me to do let me know, I've written the next two chapter so if i can't fit them in i'll let you know.

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Harry walked back to his table in the great hall. Dinner was almost over and suddenly as the adrenaline left his veins he felt voracious with hunger. Grabbing several things at once and placing them on his plate he began to shovel food into his mouth. A disgusted look appeared on Hermoine's face, "Can you atleast try to eat like you have some sort of decency?"

"Relax love, he's just eating like a healthy bloke, right mate?" Ron said, kissing his girlfriend on the cheek which caused her to blush a bit.

"So Harry, where did you run off to, really?" Hermoine asked in all her infinite wisdom.

Swallowing a large mouthful of food, Harry replied, "I went to follow Malfoy, something about him being here doesn't sit well with me."

"That bugger was the one who let all those Death Eaters in and McGonagall has the audacity to let him waltz up in here like nothing happened" Ron added.

"I know Harry, and I dont trust him either, but you heard Professor McGonagall, he's practically untouchable" Hermoine said, frustrated at the situation.

Swallowing his last bit of food, Harry thought for a moment. "He may be untouchable" he started, "but she didnt say anything about following him."

"Yea Hermoine, we'll just make sure the bloke isn't up to anything evil, we dont have to touch him or anything, just see what he's up to" Ron added, kissing his girlfriend on the cheek. Hermoine agreed reluctantly as the food began to disappear. Heading back to their dormitories, Harry went to his room to check his schedule. Opening his trunk he saw a blank folded piece of paper placed neatly on top of everything else.

Examining the paper Harry muttered to himself "i solemnly swear I am up to no good" bringing the Marauder's Map back to life. When he had packed it, it was more of an after thought and honestly Harry thought he'd never use it again. However, now he was glad that he'd brought it with him. Now he could watch Draco from anywhere in the school. Scanning the map for the name "Draco Malfoy", he found it residing and unmoving in the slytherin dormitories. Harry watched for a while, then murmured "Mischief Managed" losing interest at the unmoving name. Closing his eyes he let sleep wrap him in its clutches as their final year began.

Harry and his friends tracked Draco as best they could and, oddly enough, any class that Draco had, one or more of them were in which made the task considerably less difficult. After about a week Harry, Ron and Hermoine were able to find that Draco was only taking Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions, and Transfiguration classes. Classes all them of them were taking. With the use of the marauder's map they were able to track his movements between classes. At meal times they noticed that he was there for only short amounts of time, eating just enough scraps to subsist off of and then leaving.

"Well, Harry, it looks like he only goes to class, the dining hall, and his room, thats it." Hermoine said, a bit surprised and worried at the same time.

"In class, he barely talks, he doesn't seem quite like his normal self. Its eerie mate." Ron added in a quasi anxious tone.

"Oh well don't me he's depressed or something." Harry said, bitterness present in his voice.

"You mean like how you were?" Hermoine asked "well he's certainly got the symptoms" She started off in her 'know-it-all-tone', which in fact was just Hermoines way of talking, "he's more reserved, he doesn't eat very much when we're in the dining halls, and from what I can gather, he's probably sleeping a lot more too if he's in his room for so long." She added in all her knowledge.

"Well what's he got to be depressed about? Its his fault that Hogwarts was almost completely annihilated." Harry said furiously.

"That's exactly why Harry, he probably feels guilty about all that he's done and wants to make amends. Plus who knows what Voldemort and Bellatrix did to his head while he was under their influence" Hermoine said.

"Bloke's probably messed up all in the head, the poor bastard." Ron chimed in.

"Not to mention every Death Eater except the Malfoy's have been jailed" Hermoine added, "Many of whom were probably close friends of his at one point in time."

Harry thought for a while, maybe Draco was depressed or maybe he wasn't. One thing was certain though, with no Dark Lord and the majority of the Death Eaters in Azkaban a new revolt was extremely likely. It bothered Harry that Draco was here, it bothered him that the professors seemed like they were pretending like none of it ever happened. But what bothered him most of all was the fact that he felt empathy for the ferret boy. He'd been down that road many times throughout his journey at hogwarts. Having felt this pain of guilt, loss, and pure loneliness. Harry could only find a strong will from deep inside urging him to help the poor fellow. Having gone through it he knew how strong the need was to have someone that could relate to the confusing, hurtful emotions that depression could he now knew he would help the Slytherin boy he didn't want to place all his trust in the lad even though he knew the boy still had good in him.

Sighing about the thoughts he was mulling over Harry finally ended the meeting saying they'll keep an eye out just in case but that at this point he probably didn't need to be watched that closely. Hermoine and Ron nodded and left. 'Probably off snogging each other' Harry thought to himself. It was getting late and Harry thought it'd be a good idea to catch up on the sleep he'd been missing because of his spying and within 5 minutes he was sleeping soundly.

Draco on the other hand was not. He lay awake, his mind still replaying the hatred he'd seen in Harry's eyes one week ago. He could deal with everyone else but Harry was different, he actually mattered to Draco, after all, everyone else had pretty much abandoned him. His father had left shortly after Draco made up his mind to go back to Hogwarts, cursing him for going to that school filled with mud-bloods and muggle sympathizers. His mother was just at her wit's end, trying to keep from falling apart since his father's departure but failing miserably and eventually blaming Draco for Lucius's departure. Harry was the only one in his life that had ever tried to save him, even with the hatred they held against one another, Harry was willing to pull him from the fiendfyre that had killed his beloved friend. Ever since that moment, Draco couldn't feel any anger at his rival and he just wished he could thank him properly. However, once he got past his anger at Harry, he realized another emotion bubbling up inside him.

Draco had developed a crush on Harry, one that was very persistent. He'd tried to rationalize it away as a normal reaction to someone who saved his life but Draco knew the truth as he'd never felt this way about anyone else, not Pansy, not anyone. It only helped to worsen his depression because he knew his family wouldn't approve. He was supposed to be the one to carry the Malfoy legacy. He'd hoped that maybe now that he wasn't tied to his family, he might be able to talk to Harry and find the roots of these feelings, but that stare, it was so full of hatred. Draco knew that nothing he could do would change that and it made him cry again, deep, heaving sobs.

Draco wished that he just had someone to talk to, to vent about all that was going through his life, but ever since his arrival, his so called "friends" have never once looked him in the eyes. He knew that all his old "friends" were gone and that he was all alone in a place that hated him. Draco was glad for the charms he'd placed around his room for he was far too upset to even cast a simple lumos let alone anything that was even remotely complex.

That night, like every night before, Draco cried himself to sleep, tasting his own tears long into the night wishing he had someone who cared enough to hold him and wipe away his tears.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: This is minimally edited and frankly, my beta is overworked and stress as it is ,so if you see an edit that is needed let me know and i'll try to fix it. Hope you all enjoy

With Ron and Hermoine no longer concerned with Draco, Harry took to following the Slytherin Boy on his own, still distrustful of him. In class Harry focused more on Draco than he did his own studies and after about 2 weeks his grades began to slip as he began to obsess over Draco.

This did not go unnoticed by Draco who could practically feel Harry's eyes on him almost constantly. Draco wished he had Potter's invisibility cloak so that he could hide from those hate filled green eyes that seemed to cut right down to his soul. It didn't help that all the other students tried their hardest to "accidentally" bump into him between classes. It hurt him that he couldn't simply charm or curse a few of them for he knew he was on thin ice already. He had barely gained admittance to the school.

Before he could be allowed to attend he was required to have a meeting with all the professors and Professor McGonagall who doubled as the headmistress and the transfiguration professor. It wasn't exactly a fond memory, but if it got him away from his parents he was glad.

Three days after Draco had mailed his letter McGonagall appeared at his front door. When he greeted her at the door, there was a look of exhaustion in her face. "Mr. Malfoy, I have some news for you."

Draco was a little concerned at the appearance of his teacher, as they normally sent confirmation letters home. He simply nodded at the Headmistress, allowing her to continue with her news.

"This is in regards to the completion of your education at Hogwarts" she continued, pulling an envelope from her cloak and handing it to Draco. "Inside that envelope you will find a letter and a quill. The letter has been affected with Protean Charm and will let you know of your enrollment status as it is decided. At precisely 10am the quill shall become a portkey to a location where your professors and I will converse about you future at Hogwarts. It will be open for approximately 5 minutes. Should you miss this opportunity, you shall not be allowed to attend Hogwarts, am I clear about this?"

"Y-Yes Headmistress" Draco said, stammering.

"Excellent, I hope to see you tomorrow morning." And with that, the Headmistress l apparted to her next location, a popping noise was the only thing that signaled her departure. He stood at the door a moment, a bit dazed from the visit. Closing the door, he went back to his room and through the envelope on his desk and fell head first into his bed. It wasn't until later that night that Draco opened the envelope and sure enough out popped a quill and parchment with simply "Draco Malfoy" written across the top. He didn't know what to expect but at least he had a shot at returning school.

At 9:00am Draco awoke,and readied himself for the meeting. He brushed his teeth and hair and tried his best to look as presentably as possible to hopefully make as good an impression as possible. He made extra certain to cover his arm of the Death Eater tattoo they had branded him with. Every time he saw his tattoo he was reminded og his time under Voldemort's control, and frankly, he those weren't very fond memories.

At precisely 10:00 he heard the quill make a faint buzzing sound for a moment. He grabbed the quill was immediately pulled through to the location of his meeting. He hoped to Merlin that he would be allowed back in Hogwarts where he could hopefully make amends to the people that mattered to him.

The meeting was held at a location that Draco was unsure of. He felt all the eyes of his professors glaring at him as he appeared in the middle of the room. Looking around the room he noticed there were no doors, only windows, there were raised podiums that formed a circle around his room where each professor stood watching. Glancing around the room he noticed in the stands above the podium sat none other than the Minister of Magic himself, Kingsley Shacklebot. Draco shivered, he was very nervous and very afraid. What if he were to be barred from re-entering Hogwarts, or worse, taken to Azkaban with the other Death Eaters? He tried not to think abut the second option, but with Minister present, he wasn't sure. Draco hoped that the panel of professors were more sensible than they were emotional.

"Draco Malfoy" Minerva McGonagall started, staring down at the Slytherin boy from her podium, "In the past 2 years you were a loyal Death Eater to the Dark Lord, Voldemort, and you were the one who allowed the Death Eaters into Hogwarts, allowing them to take over our beloved school. Your allegiance was to Voldemort up until the Battle at Hogwarts where you then deserted him with your family, am i correct in this summary of events?"

"Yes, Headmistress" the pale boy managed to squeak out, his nervousness making his mouth dry and his throat itch.

"Well then Mr. Malfoy" Professor Slughorn said from behind the young man, "Let me just cut to the chase, why should we let you re-enroll here at Hogwarts? Your track record the past 2 years hasn't been exactly great."

Draco was extremely scared, he hadn't been expecting to plead his case to attend his school. "W-well, I-i" he began, swallowing to hopefully regain some composure, "I would first like to apologize to all you for the mistakes that I have made." His pale hands began to shake as he felt glares from all across the room directed on him. "But things have changed, the now departed Dark Lord and I do not share similar views. I do not wish to see my school destroyed nor any of my professors harmed in anyway. I never imagined what the consequences were for my actions, but I was more afraid of what the consequences would be for my in action. My family and I... had we disobeyed the Dark Lords wishes... I wish things could have been different for me."

"You had the option to not be a death eater Draco." A voice behind him snapped, dripping with contempt. Draco thought for a moment. He wasn't exactly thrilled at the return of the Dark Lord but it had seemed better than Hogwarts at the time. Though in all actuality he hadn't had much of a choice, it was either join or die for his family, Voldemort and his father had made that very clear.

Draco opened his mouth to reply when Minister Shacklebot started "Septima, let us not forget who the Malfoys were and that Lucius nor his family were not in a position to refuse the dark lord."

Septima scoffed, not even attempting to hide the disdain she held for the Malfoys.

"I am inclined to side with Minister Shacklebot in this case Septima, it was not Draco's fault that he became a DeathEater." Minerva said.

"With the Malfoys' coercion into becoming a DeathEater, do you think he should be held wholly accountable for his actions?" Professor Slughorn asked to the panel of professors.

There was a pause before anyone else spoke. "I believe it would be inline with Dumbledore's wishes for the child to continue his education if he so wishes, Dumbledore was not one to judge his students too harshly and was willing to give them a second chance if need be,"Minister Shacklebot said, breaking the silence.

Malfoy pleaded with his professors, "I want to make a name for myself separate from that of my father and my mother. Since Voldemort's defeat, my father has deserted us and my mother has become... less than motherly."

The room became silent once again. "Are there any other questions or comments directed at the boy?" McGonagall asked, looking to her fellow professors. The room remained silent. "Draco, do you have anything else you would like to say to us?"

"I would just like to reiterate that I wish to atone for the things that I've done." The pale skinned boy said, dropping his head, he added almost inaudibly "I... I just want to feel good about myself again"

Minerva nodded. "Very well then, Malfoy we will take into account what you have said and will get back to you promptly. Now if you would be so kind as to hold out the quill I gave to you, I will send you home."

Draco held out his hand the quill laying in his palm. With a flick of McGonagall's wrist he was back in his room, staring at his desk. He walked over to his bed and sat down, exhausted from his body's response to the anxiety.

The rest of the day was a bit tense for Draco, he was fairly certain that he would be able to attend after Minister Shacklebot's interruption, however, it was still up in the air. The day seemed to pass extremely slow for Malfoy. Later that night, as he lay in his bed wishing sleep would take him, he heard the faint sound of a quill writing on paper.

_This letter is to serve as an enrollment verification for Draco Malfoy. The student is to report to platform 9 and 3/4. At 10am on August sheet is to be presented to the conductor before entry to the Hogwarts Express._

_Headmistress Minerva McGonagall_

__A/N: Hey two for one deal :D, please send feedback/criticism I live for feedback guys, plus if it sucks i cant know if you guys dont say things!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Sorry this took so long, I've been busy and well, that's life. Hopefully all you lovelies will enjoy this and until next time I bid you adieu.

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The first month and a half at Hogwarts came and went for Harry, but for Draco it seemed to drag on, feeling more like a year had passed than less than 2 months. Draco had hoped that the taunting by his peers would cease after a few weeks, but he was wrong. Dead wrong. In fact, the more time he spent at the school, the worse it got, and soon he felt that he was imprisoned in Azkaban instead of at Hogwarts.

Students openly shoved him and tried to curse him on a daily basis. He got tired of not being able to defend himself in the hallways and corridor and even more tired of the professors who turned a blind eye to his torture. To vent his anger and frustration he tried screaming into a pillow and punching it but after about a week that was rendered useless. He tried destroying his pillow and then repairing it, imagining it was his foes but it didn't help much. After a while he just gave up, falling face first into his pillow and sprawling out on his bed.

Harry on the other hand, revisited the chapter of his life where he had obsessed over Draco's every move, though this time without the help of Dobby, the house elf. It was difficult to follow Draco though as he usually bolted straight to his room or to class. He was not spending his time with friends, he even avoided spending time with the Slytherin quidditch team. Not that Harry was surprised seeing as most of the Slytherin Quidditch team had been rather irritated with the Death Eater invasion.

Harry saw a large amount of bullying that Malfoy received. At first he felt like the traitor had deserved it, after all he did aid in the almost-destruction of Hogwarts. Though after awhile it seemed people were going a bit too far. For Harry, the curses were too much and when he saw students readying them he would cast Protego around Draco silently, making sure none of the curses hit their mark.

It soon became a full time job ensuring that Draco didn't end up in the infirmary and it was starting to cut into the time Harry spent with Ron and Hermione, not that the two love birds would notice as they were very much enjoying each others company, many times leaving when the trio were together to "study more in-depth" as Hermione put it, which usually warranted some sexual innuendo on Ron's part, and a subsequent blush from Hermione.

Harry wouldn't have minded if they'd simply said they were going to shag, in fact he probably wouldn't have noticed seeing as his head was buried in the marauders map, watching Draco's every move, wondering what he could be doing.

Harry was watching the Marauders map and almost fell asleep until he noticed that Draco was wandering through one of the corridors alone. What could he be planning, Harry wondered, when suddenly his name simply disappeared. Harry, now fully alert, scanned the entire map just to make sure, he even rubbed his eyes to make, hoping his eyes were playing trick on him, but sure enough, the cursive writing that read "Draco Malfoy" was gone, which could only mean one thing. Draco was using the Room of Requirement again.

He had been walking through the Slytherin corridors towards the bathrooms when Draco stumbled upon the door to the Room of Requirement. He hadn't really given the room much thought since he'd spent so much time in his room crying, venting and reading the few books he'd brought with him from home, that he'd forgotten the room was even there. Looking at a door in a place where none belonged he'd remembered how he, Crabbe, and Goyle had tried to capture Harry for Voldemort. He shivered as he remembered his time with the death eaters, how he had to suppress the feelings he felt for Harry, and how Crabbe and Goyle were no longer with him. That was the past, and though he was done grieving the loss of his friend, he had a new reason for hiding his feelings towards Harry. Draco feared rejection from Harry more than anything at the moment, even though he knew his feelings could never be reciprocated. He was well aware of Potter's distrust and contempt of him. Walking into the Room of Requirement, Draco thought to himself that the bathroom could wait, it wasn't going anywhere.

Harry jumped out of bed, went to his trunk, yanked out his invisibility cloak and bolted out of the gryffindor dormitories. I knew he was up to no good, this time though I'll stop him before he can get started,Harry thought to himself. With the marauders map in hand he tracked Draco's last known location. As he rounded the corner that led to the bathrooms, pausing, he stopped and looked around. This was where Malfoy had disappeared, had the door disappeared as well?

Lumos

He examined the wall next to him. He ran his fingers across the wall lightly, willing a door to appear that would lead to the ever elusive room. He had to find out what Malfoy, for the good of Hogwarts.

As if hearing his plea a door slowly emerged from the stone wall and presented itself to him. Throwing on his invisibility cloak, he slowly opened the door and stepped inside.

In the room there was a large assortment of items, thrown about as if there were no rhyme or reason, though much to Dracos relief, there were no scorch marks. As he walked around the room, examining the room he heard a faint noise towards the back of the room. Walking through the maze of items he reached a record player. It was a relatively old player, powered by some enchantment. The record player was playing a song that Draco had heard before but couldn't place the name. It was a melodic tone, soothing in its nature. He felt at ease listening to the song.

A glint of light from behind a large stack of old books showed in his eye. His curiosity peaked, Malfoy began digging his way through the outdated textbooks.

As Harry entered the Room of Requirement the first thing he noticed was the very large stacks of, much to Harry's surprise, un-charred "stuff". Everything was in almost pristine condition, though the room was a bit cluttered. The second thing he noticed was the soft music coming from the other side of the room. Making his way through the room Harry held on tightly to his invisibility cloak to hide from Draco. Careful to not make a sound he tiptoed through the maze of junk scattered across the room, eventually reaching the record player, and consequently Malfoy as well.

Harry paused soundlessly as he watched Draco doing his best to move a pile of books out of the way of… something. He watched quietly for a minute or two trying to determine what Malfoy was scheming this time before he realized what Draco was unearthing, The Mirror of Erised.

Harry wanted to stop him, to warn him of the dangers that lied in the Mirror of Erised, how he had almost fallen prey to its charm, but something stopped him. Part of him wanted to know what Draco saw, wanted to know Draco's heart's desire and that part of him is what held him in place.

Draco had never seen the Mirror nor was he aware of its enchantment, so as he finally dug through the pile of books and looked into the mirror. At first the only image he saw was a reflection of himself, a for a moment the Mirror of Erised seemed to be acting as a true mirror. However, within a few seconds another figure entered the scene. A startled Draco turned around to find no one behind him. Looking back at the Mirror the image seemed to pick up where it left off. The image walked closer and closer to Draco. Looking over his shoulder again he saw no figure behind him, a bewildered expression began to show on his face. Returning his gaze to the mirror, he noticed that the figure seemed rather familiar. The curve of his body, the shape of his face. As the figure approached Malfoy's reflection there was no mistaking the lightning bolt scar on his forehead. "Potter?" He whispered to himself. As the image in the mirror approached him, a serene smile on its face. Draco's reflection turned to face Harry's image where the two embraced and kissed, lovingly.

Draco's chest burned as he watched his hearts desire play out on the mirror. He wanted Harry badly, wanted to show the boy with the lightning scar how he truly felt, but he knew that deep down he couldn't. Harry hated his guts and even if he didn't, Draco was a Malfoy, and Malfoys were not allowed to be gay, his father had made that very clear. Tears began to stream down his face, It was frustrating trying to hide his feelings and even though he had disowned his family, he still was hesitant in breaking away from his family's influence. He couldn't take watching the mirror any longer he turned around to leave when he saw Harry standing between him and the exit.

"Draco-"

"Potter? What in bloody hell are you doing here? How long have you been there?" Draco asked a bit rushed, embarrassed that Harry may have been able to see what he'd just seen.

"Well, I followed you here to-"

"Oh still spying on me? I thought McGonagall said that you and your lot were to treat me with 'the utmost respect.'" Draco said, a bit more annoyance creeping into his voice.

"Draco, what you did—"

"I know what I've done Potter!" Draco yelled, tears welling in his eyes. "I know what I've done and I have to live with it every single night for the rest of my life, wondering to myself why i didn't dessert my family when I knew what I was doing was wrong." Tears were streaming down his face as he yelled at his crush. "I hate myself for the pain and suffering that I caused. I wanted to fix what I had done, and so I came here, back to the site of my betrayal." Malfoy let out an exasperated sigh, and finished in a barely audible tone, "but nobody wants me, nobody cares about me."

Suddenly Harry felt guilty for not believing Malfoy when he said he wasn't plotting anything. Harry was all too familiar unwanted and unloved. "Thats not true Draco" Harry said, choking up as he stared into Draco's grey eyes. They were cold and full of sadness. As Harry went to embrace Draco, his body seemed to begin to move on its own, grabbing his waist and pulling him into a kiss, a prolonged peck on the lips. Draco's eyes widened in shock. Harry jerked back, surprised at what had happened. A blush spread across Harry's face, embarrassment and fear setting in.

"What is the meaning of this Potter? I thought you hated me," Draco said, a bewildered look appearing on his face.

"Well… I did, but then, something changed. I understood how you felt, being bullied by everyone and so I started intervening. I made sure nobody could curse you, even if you didn't know it was me protecting you. And, well…" Harry's voice trailed off.

Draco really wanted to kiss Harry back, to let the world around him melt away and feel the bliss he'd felt in that first kiss. But there was something holding him back. "Why should i trust you? You were spying on me to see if I was trying to destroy your bloody school and frankly-"

Draco was silenced by another kiss from the green-eyed boy. This time Draco didn't resist or freeze, instead he welcomed the kiss. Harry parted his lips to let his tongue escape and Draco reciprocated, eventually forming a passionate french kiss. After a few minutes, the two parted lips and stared at each other, blushes evident on each others face. Tears welled in Draco's eyes as he looked up at Harry. He was happy to have Harry reciprocate his feelings and for the first time tears of joy fell from his eyes. Draco buried his face in Harry robe to hide his face. Harry smiled and stroked the shorter boy's blonde hair. He wasn't sure when he'd developed a crush on Draco but he knew one thing for certain, he enjoyed snogging Malfoy more than he enjoyed all of the time he'd spent with Ginny.

"I guess you'll have to figure out a reason to trust me."


End file.
